


Written In The Stars

by chaotic_carisi



Category: Law & Order: SVU
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-08
Updated: 2020-11-08
Packaged: 2021-03-08 22:20:10
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,742
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27444028
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chaotic_carisi/pseuds/chaotic_carisi
Summary: “Well, we’re here now, aren’t we?” Rafael took Sonny’s hand. “So, tell me about the stars.” He leaned against Sonny as the lights around the roof turned off. The only light now came from the streets below and the moon above.
Relationships: Rafael Barba/Dominick "Sonny" Carisi Jr.
Comments: 3
Kudos: 35





	Written In The Stars

“Come on.” Sonny said, holding his hand out to Rafael who was quite comfortable where he was. “Come on, get up.”

He groaned and took Sonny’s hand. “Why? Where are we going.” He stood up, glancing back at the couch as Sonny led him to the front door. “We can’t go out, it’s almost midnight!”

Sonny stopped as Rafael tugged on his arm. “We aren’t going out exactly.“ He shrugged, but Rafael still didn’t move. “Please, Rafi. It’ll be worth it, I promise.”

“It better be.” He muttered under his breath, before following Sonny out of the apartment to the stairwell. “Where are you going?” He asked. Instead of turning left to go downstairs, Sonny had turned right and had his hand on the bannister, ready to upstairs.

“Come on.” He repeated, beginning to climb the stairs. Sighing, Rafael began to follow him, cursing Sonny’s long legs as he quickly found himself out of breath. 

After the third flight of stairs, Rafael realised they were going to the roof. The roof, he thought, of all places, why the roof? There was nothing particularly exciting about the roof. It was just...a roof. 

“You alright?” Sonny asked as Rafael finally joined him on the top floor, clutching a stitch in his side. 

“You cheated.” He gasped, leaning against the taller man. 

“What? How did I cheat?” Sonny asked, his arm snaking around Rafael’s waist. 

“You clearly have longer legs, Soleado. That’s an unfair advantage if you ask me.” 

“It’s a good thing no one asked you then.” Sonny laughed, then leaned down, kissing Rafael gently before he could argue back. “Are you ready?” He asked as he straightened up. 

“Ready for what?” Rafael was lightheaded, and not from the stairs. He focused on Sonny’s lips as he answered, almost forgetting about his rooftop surprise. 

Sonny leant down for another kiss, then opened the door to the roof, letting Rafael step out first. 

Rafael had only been on the roof a few times since moving into the apartment, but the few times he had been up, it was empty, kind of dirty, and only had some old broken plant pots lying around. That wasn’t the case tonight. 

In the middle of the roof was a large picnic blanket, covered with blankets and cushions, cushions that Rafael had been looking for. Lights had been strung up around the rooftop, and a bottle of expensive looking scotch was sitting on an upturned plant pot, with 2 glasses next to it. Rafael was speechless. 

Well, he was until he remembered asking Sonny about the cushions the day before. 

“You did take them!” He turned to Sonny, pointing accusingly at the cushions. 

“Really? That’s what you're thinking about?” Sonny teased, leading Rafael over to the blanket and sitting down. 

Rafael sat next to him, still looking around in awe as Sonny poured a drink. “What brought this on?”

“Do you remember our first date?” 

“How could I forget?” 

It had taken a few months of light flirting before Rafael finally worked up the nerve to ask Sonny on a date, and then another month before they managed to go out, thanks to Sonny being pulled onto an undercover case. When they finally managed to go out, Sonny was called into the precinct halfway through their meal. Rafael remembered how Sonny stared at the sky that night as they walked to the precinct. It was a clear night for once, and the stars were bright, brighter than Rafael had ever seen them. 

“I’ll tell you about the stars one day.” Sonny had whispered, as he kissed Rafael on the cheek before going into the precinct. 

Rafael thought about that moment a lot. He wondered what Sonny meant by that, and why he knew about the stars in the first place. He had never been one for astrology, but the idea of Sonny telling Rafael about the stats gave him goosebumps. 

Rafael looked up at the sky now, noticing for the first time how clear it was. “So, you’re finally telling me about the stars?” 

“What do you mean, finally?” Sonny asked, watching the expression on Rafael’s face soften as his eyes focused on the stars. 

“Sonny, it’s been 2 years.” Rafael tore his gaze away from the never-ending expanse of dark night sky to look Sonny in the eyes. “I’ve been waiting to hear about the stars for 2 years.”

It had been 2 years. Sonny had wanted to have this moment sooner, of course, he had tried to plan it multiple times, but something always happened, something always got in the way. Sometimes Sonny had to work late, or the weather wasn’t right, or Rafael was so tired by the time he got home that he fell asleep on Sonny’s lap while they watched TV.

“I know. I know, Raf, I’m sorry it took so long.” He sighed, wishing he had been able to plan this night better. There was nothing special about tonight. It was a Thursday, in the middle of November. It wasn’t a birthday, or an anniversary, or any type of celebration. It was just a night when the sky happened to be clear and neither of them were working or sleeping. “I tried to plan it sooner, but, well, things came up.” He glanced down at his hands. 

“Well, we’re here now, aren’t we?” Rafael took Sonny’s hand. “So, tell me about the stars.” He leaned against Sonny as the lights around the roof turned off. The only light now came from the streets below and the moon above. 

“Well,” Sonny started, wrapping a long arm around Rafael and pulling him closer against his chest. “That’s the moon.” He pointed with his free hand at the clearly visible moon. 

“No way,” Rafael rolled his eyes. “I thought it was the sun.” 

“You know, a lot of people think that, but it really is the moon.” He laughed, his laugh echoing around the roof.

It was New York City, it wasn’t exactly a quiet place, but here on the roof, in the dark, Rafael could only hear Sonny. 

“Come on, I want to hear about the stars. What are those ones?” He pointed vaguely towards the stars, but Sonny’s eye caught one, well, 3 in particular, and had to fight a smile as he began to talk. 

“Those three?” He felt Rafael nod against him. “Those make up Orion’s Belt. Bit of a waste of space, if you ask me.”

“Really? It’s a good thing no one’s asking you.” Rafael said, but he couldn’t suppress the smile on his face. Trust Sonny to find a joke about anything. 

“Yeah, well, I’d only give it 3 out of 5 stars.” Sonny knew it was risky to use 2 jokes at once, but he couldn’t help it. The opportunity was there, and he had to take it. 

“You’re pushing your luck, Soleado.” Rafael muttered, pulling one of the blankets over himself and Sonny. 

“Okay, okay. You see that one?” Rafael nodded as Sonny began to point out more stars, each seeming brighter than the last. 

He listened as Sonny spoke, his voice soft and calm for once, watching as his hand, bright against the dark sky, pointed out the different constellations. He listened as Sonny spoke of Leo the lion, and Taurus the bull, names that Rafael had heard before, but never in this context. 

For the first time in a long time, Rafael felt at peace. He thought of nothing but Sonny and the stars, all thoughts of work were gone. He felt his own breathing fall in time with Sonny’s, and listened to the gentle thump of Sonny’s heart as he lay against his chest. 

“Rafi?” Sonny whispered, 20 minutes after he stopped talking. Rafael had barely noticed the silence. Truthfully, he was half asleep. “You awake?”

Rafael grunted in response, too tired to think of a real answer. He knew it was late, and that he probably shouldn’t fall asleep on the roof, but he was comfortable lying against Sonny’s chest, he was warm, and he was happy. Moving was the last thing on his mind. 

Sonny was clearly not sharing the same thoughts, as he began to move, slowly pushing Rafael off him. 

“You gotta be awake for this, baby.” He said, standing up. 

“Awake for what?” Rafael asked, watching as Sonny stretched a bit, before walking over to the edge of the roof. “You aren’t going to jump, are you?” 

“What? No, I’m not going to jump.” He laughed, and turned back to Rafael, who was now sitting up rubbing his eyes. 

“So, what it is then?” He watched as stood in front of him, his hands in his pockets, staring at the ground. He had never seen him look so nervous, not even when he took the Bar. 

“Rafael, I love you. I love you more than I’ve ever loved anyone. You have changed my life for the better and I can’t imagine where I’d be without you. You mean the world to me, more than the world, you are my entire universe. You mean more to me than the stars in the sky.” He paused, took a deep breath and looked up from the ground to Rafael’s eyes. 

Rafael wasn’t expecting what came next. 

Sonny dropped to one knee. 

He held his hands out to Rafael, and Rafael saw the small box. 

He opened the box, hands shaking. 

“Rafael Barba, Will you marry me?” 

There was nothing but silence as Rafael looked from the ring in the box to Sonny’s eyes. His breath caught in his chest as he leaned forward. 

“Yes. Yes of course I’ll marry you.” The words had barely left his mouth as Sonny grabbed him, pulling him into a tight hug. 

“I love you so much, Rafi.” He murmured against his shoulder. “More than anything.”

“I love you too, Sonny.” He stumbled a little as Sonny released him from the hug. Sonny took his hand in his own and slid the ring on his finger. “Sonny Barba-Carisi.” He smiled as he tested out the name, but Sonny frowned. 

“Carisi-Barba sounds better, I think.” He said, already knowing he was fighting a losing battle. 

“Barba-Carisi has the benefit of being alphabetical, as well as clearly better sounding, Soleado.” 

“Fine. Barba-Carisi it is.” He agreed, leaning down to kiss his fiancé on the forehead. 

Rafael knew, as he leaned against Sonny, that he would remember this night forever.


End file.
